One last love
by PawsLover
Summary: Joel and Ellie decide to have a new adventure, this time travelling across the whole country! Join Ellie, Joel and the new OC in this new adventure, in which Ellie not only did travel across the city, but fell in love! Will Joel be okay with his, or step into action to take care of her not so little baby-girl? T for language, gore, and guns.
1. Chapter 1

Ellie and Joel had encountered a lot of things since the incident in the fireflies hospital.

For starters, Ellie had ran away from Joel for almost a week after Joel told her the truth and didn't come back until she realised her mistake. Joel loved her as a daughter and she was far more important than the world to him.

Joel has explained himself afterwards, telling her how a cure wouldn't work since the world was a rotten place, and that Tommy's idea was far more better and civilised.

And that leaded to their second adventure, making a life at Tommy's, Jackson City.

It had gone pretty well, and Ellie had been excited as always, talking about her future plans with Joel, how he'd teach her to play guitar, how'd she would paint their room every month and put a lot of drawings, toys and souvenirs from the places that they had visited, and Joel had to question her; _Why not make separated rooms?_.

And that leaded to their third _adventure_ , Ellie's crush on Joel.

After a whole day of full meditation mode, Joel had come to the conclusion that it wasn't that of a weird thing. Ellie was growing up and her hormones and mind were changing as well as her body, she just needed to find more boys, and hopefully her age. Or at least, that he hoped.

But nothing serious happened afterwards, Ellie suddenly coming up to him, telling him she loved him but that she knew it was wrong.

 _I'll just move on, don't worry about me, old grumpy man._ Was what she told him, and even though he heard her soft sniffs in the first few nights after that, he knew she would move on. She was strong.

They had even forgot about the issue months afterwards, and after a little longer, they even got bored of doing nothing more than night shifts to cover the city and some expeditions.

And thus, commenced their latest adventure. Travelling through the country, Ellie's newest and biggest dream.

They had decided that the safest way to do so was pointing one place on the map, travelling to it, finding what was it about and then going back to Tommy's to help.

And, just like Joel had thought, they didn't even reach their first location when trouble found them.

Or, well, they found trouble.

And it came with 10 fingers, two eyes, two ears and everything else a human had.

"Who are you, and why are you here?" Ellie winced at Joel's tone, once used to it but now not anymore.

"That's what I should be asking, if anything, you ran into this town, so tell me now, since I don't care who the hell you are, why are you here?" The guy in front of them, with a shotgun and a rifle both on his back, asked with a stern look and a frown.

He wasn't old, he was probably few years older than Ellie, maybe two or three, but his voice told Joel he was ready, and he didn't want to take any chances.

"We're travellers just passing by to reach Transilvania, nothing else" Joel replied with the same tone, just a bit lower. He hid Ellie behind him a bit more slowly, worried.

The guy behind them blew some air through his nose, visible since it was colder than normal, and turned his back on them, motioning them both to follow him.

Joel had first planned to run away, but Ellie obliged, following the boy wherever he was going.

They soon reached a little market inside the abandoned town, and the boy opened the door, letting them come in first before him.

Joel found himself amazed, the place full of weapons and ammunition, grenades, flashbangs, smokes and more.

Things a kid like him shouldn't even know about, but it seemed otherwise.

"Wouldn't recommend you to go over there now, you travellers" He said without looking at them, cleaning one of the sniper rifles that were on a little workbench.

"And why would you tell us that?" Joel asked with a stern look, waiting for him to turn and try to attack them.

"You see this place? Well, imagine this the size of a state" Joel's eyes widened.

It was true that he hadn't even heard anything about Transilvania, but he couldn't believe that.

"I know because I ran away from there" Ellie was checking one of the pistols he had on the workbench, and Joel clearly was just an inch away from scolding her for being to close to they guy, "Oh, that's a new project I'm working now" He picked the gun up, a _Desert Eagle_ , and handled it to Ellie, "You can check it out, it's supposed to fire bullets a bit stronger without messing with the recoil"

Ellie picked it up carefully, and turned to Joel with a confident smirk on her face, annoying him.

"Anyway, I would recommend you to get away from that place, and go somewhere safe, like Jackson City" The guy with dark, Raven hair said, and the mention of his brother's city tickled somewhere in Joel's heart.

"Why do you know about that city?" He asked, motioning Ellie to go back to him, and she did, but not before returning the gun to its place.

"I'm planning to move there, obviously" He said, turning back finally to see Joel in the eye, "You think a kid like me can survive too long in this cold ass place? No way in hell, but first I'm looking for a way to take all this equipment over there" He sighed, "It'd be a waste to leave it all here, wouldn't it?" Joel agreed with him.

All that advanced equipment would help a lot at Tommy's.

"But why would you do that, though?" This time Ellie spoke, "It's not like you know us or whatever" She forgot the fact that be didn't know they were coming from Jackson, and was ready to face Joel's rage later that day.

"Oh so you two are from there? Well that makes everything easier, doesn't it?" Joel exhaled annoyed, and nodded hesitantly.

He would ground Ellie for a week after they're done with everything.

"Then we can go over there together!" The boy smiled, showing a less mature part of himself, "I'm James, by the way! My pleasure" He extended his hand, and in fear that Joel would leave him hanging there, Ellie took hold of it.

"I'm Ellie, and this grumpy guy is Joel, my...uh, my dad" She still wasn't used to call him like that, but since it fit naturally, and she liked it, she called him like that.

"Oh well, we should wait till sunrise, you don't wanna hang out in the night around here, fucking full of infected and even worst, bandits" Joel nodded, reckon they both find some infected not so long ago on the road, "Now you two follow me, you're lucky I went hunting today, we're having some deer and, _oh deer_ , you're gonna love it" Ellie let out a giggle at Joel's annoyed groan.

Another guy with a pun book.

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Ellie and Joel followed James until they reached a small house by the river, at the outsides of the little town they were before, and even Joel was quite impressed at how beautiful the house was.

It seemed to be a normal, fishing cabin but restored, with a lot of sings that said that it was not ok to come near and that guns will be used.

"Welcome to what I like to call home" He said walking towards the door, "Do come in, and of course" He moved to the side after opening the door, "Ladies first" Ellie looked at him with confusion.

"Why should I go first? It's your house" She complained, but still went inside, with Joel behind her letting a huge sigh.

He had spent almost a _day_ teaching Ellie manners, but still the girl was lost.

 _At least she doesn't chew with her mouth open anymore,_ he thought before checking out the house.

It was normal, indeed. Few furniture here and there and pictures that were probably not even his. There was light and also some emergencies candles in it.

"You have electricity here?" Ellie wondered as she turned the lights on and off a few times before Joel stopped her.

"A small emergency reactor in the basement, yeah. Can't use it a lot, but it gives me a light and some way to cook my food" He snapped his fingers, "Which reminds me, Joel I need a favour, can you please take this tank" He went to the kitchen and returned with a gas tank in his hands, "And connect it? So I can start cooking part of the deer!" He smiled, and Joel sighed, nodding ever so slightly.

He kept an eye on the boy until he left the house, and kept his senses sharp as he walked around it, looking for a way to connect the gas.

He had to admit, he was _just a bit_ excited about that deer, since it had been awhile since he had a good piece of meat all for himself.

"There you are" He found the tube that provided gas to the whole house, and connected the tank with it.

He left it there, and ran to the door again, when he hears Ellie's cry.

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"Ellie!" Joel yelled as he kicked the door open, with his rifle in his hand, ready.

He didn't expect to find her sitting next to the dark haired boy with an excited smile on her face as the boy fixed the strings of an acoustic guitar.

"Hey, Joel, can you put the goddamn weapon down for a second? James here says he can play the guitar, and I wanna hear it!" She scolded her father figure for once with a big smile on her face, "You are never willing to play a song for me, so I'm kinda excited" She rubbed her hands together a licked her lips.

"What the- And how'd you get that, kiddo?" Joel asked, walking towards them while hiding his gun again.

"It was my father's, it's all I have left from him now" He played a few chords, and E, and A, before talking again, "More than enough, if you ask me" He started playing at a good pace, creating a slow rhythm, one that Joel recognized immediately.

And he started singing.

 _You are my sunshine._

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 **WELP, New project, since Last of us 2 is getting closer second by second, let's begin with the fun, HEH.**

 **Love! PawsLover**


	2. Chapter 2

The boy isn't the best guitarist Joel has ever heard, that's for sure. But that didn't mean he wasn't good.

His music was enjoyable, and more was his voice, not so high pitched for a little boy, nor was it too low. He was just _there._

Ellie seemed to enjoy his melody too, her body slightly moving from side to side with the music and the rhythm.

" _My sunshine, my only sunshine.."_ She even began murmuring the song, making the boy in front of her smile.

He kept singing, inviting her to do the same, and rather sooner, it almost became a duet.

 _What is this, high school musical?_ Joel thought with a smirk on his face.

He knew too well the world could use a High school musical.

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"And then, after he jumped on me, Joel kicked him on gut to set me free! It was amazing!" Ellie said as they walked through the whole forest, with a bit more equipment on Joel's bag, and with James carrying another bag full of interesting weapons and arsenal. The only one who carried her usual stuff was Ellie, who had been wearing a big, goofy smile for hours now.

"Sounds like you've had it hard, huh" James said, and Joel couldn't help but chuckle.

"That's quite an understatement" Ellie giggled and turned to see Bruce while walking backwards confidently.

"We've been through a lot of shit" Joel shook his head.

"Ellie, what did we say about language?" James snickered at Ellie's cute, pouting face.

"Oh fuck off, Joel. We're outside town" She complained, and Joel groaned.

"Ellie, I said between you and me it was ok! But we have someone extra today, so keep it down" Ellie shook her head.

"James's staying anyways, so he better get used to me now" She argumented, and Joel only scoffed in response, not having the energy to debate with the girl at that time about simple manners.

 _Who cares anyway?_ He thought as he looked at the boy who was fascinated with everything Ellie told him, from simple comic stories she always read, to her adventures with Joel.

" _Endure and survive"_ He repeated when she said her favorite phrase from her favorite comic, and Ellie laughed, her smile never leaving her face.

"Kid, if you don't stop smiling, you're gonna creep the hell outta James" Joel mocked her, earning a furrow from her and a laugh from James.

"It's okay, I like it when people are happy" He assured Joel with a smile on his face, "And it's fun either way, even if I'm not much of a reader, I enjoy good stories" She beamed at him and started talking even more than before, making Joel sigh with exhaustion.

 _Kids have so much energy…_

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Joel decides that maybe it's time for them to make a little camp and get themselves ready to sleep after a long walk, and neither Ellie nor James complains, setting themselves somewhere close to a river in the middle of the forest, James helping Joel while Ellie collected some wood to make a fire.

"What happens if you follow the river's flow?" Ellie asks after finishing her part, sitting her butt in front of the soon to be, fire.

Joel was too busy to reply, but James wasn't.

"You either find bandits, abandoned cities or infected" He said casually, "My father told me that back in the day civilizations made their cities near rivers, for basic reasons" Joel chuckled and nodded.

"That was even before my time, though. But he's right, you'll probably find bandits, infected or cities" Ellie nodded.

"And Jackson is one of those cities?" Joel nodded.

"Yep" he simply said before placing everything on its place and tried starting the fire, "Do we have any matches left?" He asked Ellie, and she checked in her bag.

"Nope" She shook her head after finding nothing.

"I got some, here" James said, searched in his pocket and tossed them to Joel.

Joel initially wanted to ask him why did he have those in his pocket, but decided otherwise.

It's the boy's business, after all.

He started the fire and took out some provisions from his own bag.

The rules while he travelled with Ellie were simple, she scavenged for her own food, and so did he.

And of course, with James there, it was the same rule.

"What've you got to eat?" Ellie asked him, peeking into his bag while he searched, getting a bit close to James's face.

A bit too much, Joel would say.

"Oh, I guess some canned beans and pork" he said as he took out a can, and a can opener.

He opened his own can and left said can on their handmade pot for it to cook, and he tossed the can opener to Joel.

"Thanks, kid" He said and opened his own can, waiting for his turn to cook it.

"So, how did you two meet?" James asked, and suddenly Ellie started laughing.

"Ohoho, it's story time, Joel" Joel sighed and nodded.

 _Yep, story time_

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Joel expected James to: 1- Be scared of Ellie, 2- Run away from Ellie, or, in worst case scenario, 3- Try to kill Ellie, after he found out about her secret, and he _guesses_ , it was in a moment of weakness, the morning after they met, that she casually told him about her... _Special_ case.

Nothing changed, though. He kept his distance from her for a few hours, but no one can actually go away from Ellie once she's attached to you, Joel knew that. And in a matter of hours James turned back into the interested boy who cared abittoomuch about Ellie.

"And then! And then-!" They've been talking- Well, _Ellie_ has been talking about gnomes, fairies and more for the past few hours, every time getting closer to the little boy, and Joel could only know what was happening.

 _She's in that age,_ He thought, and remembered how his own little daughter once went into that stage, a bit earlier than what he would've wanted.

 _It's not like she can't make him fall for her in a blink,_ He thinks, but wonders if someone can actually get so attached to someone else in such a short lapse of time.

He debated with himself if he should've _the talk_ with Ellie that night, or just let it be. But when Ellie suddenly, unconsciously brushed her elbow with the boy's one and steps away quickly (Just to get close to him again seconds later), Joel realises there's no need for him to have _that talk_ with her.

 _Not yet,_ He assured tohimself and finally starts breathing calmly.

He turned to see them both smiling to each other while James shared a story, and Joel realised that maybe it's not only Ellie.

 _Maybe I should give 'em both the talk,_ He thinks and sighs, not being exactly ready to go through all the stuff he's gone once in his life.

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They soon reach their first official stop, and first danger.

"Smells a lot like infected in here" James commented as he checked out an abandoned checkpoint in the middle of their way, "Can't we just go around it" Joel nodded, and sighed at the same time.

"Yes, but my brother Tommy asked me for a favor, and the favor is actually in this checkpoint" James groans and starts looking for something inside his backpack.

Joel instinctively clenched his fist when James took out a gun with a silencer on it.

"Right, well let's end this up rather quickly, I hate infected" He sighed and started walking in front of them, only stopping when Joel took hold of his shoulder.

"Wait, I'll go first" James frowned, and Joel realised that the boy is one of those that like to take initiative.

 _I need an excuse,_ Joel thought and turned to see Ellie, and then he turned again to see the boy.

"I need you to take care of Ellie" He said, and Ellie would've complained that she could take care of herself if it wasn't for Joel's glare.

It was that kind of glare that Joel only gave to her when stuff got serious.

"Yeah, it'll be cool to have my back watched" Ellie helped, and beamed when James suddenly changed his mood to one of agreement.

"I'll take care of you, then" He said, and in a blink of an eye, he was right behind her in full body-guard mode.

Thing that she didn't mind a bit, mind you.

"Are you guys ready to go?" Joel asked as he took deep breaths to steady himself.

The two kids nodded without hesitation, and he sighed, and thought:

 _Am I ready to risk it all again?_

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 **The last part is what I think Joel thinks every time he has to take Ellie somewhere dangerous, since, y'know, Ellie is his everything and all that cheesy stuff.**

 **See ya next update**


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